3 North Island, New Zealand - World's top ten places to live

The east coast of North Island gets many of our readers’ votes. The vine-rich
island of Waiheke, a ferry ride from Auckland, and the town of Whakatane, on
the Bay of Plenty are particularly popular.

Buying in New Zealand is easy. Getting permanent residence is not. Most likely
candidates are those under 56 with specific skills. Nurses, electricians and
mechanics are currently in demand.

Once there, prospects are bright. A survey by the New Zealand Immigration
Service found 88 per cent of those who had moved there from the UK and
Ireland felt settled in their new country. Expect to pay £200,000 for a
simple, three-bedroom beachside house in Whakatane, or £500,000 for a
designer ocean-front property of the same size, but out of town.

For sale A five-bedroom home with views of the harbour and Mount Mauao, in one
and a half acres in Te Puna, Bay of Plenty, is priced at £691,500. Bayleys (bayleys.co.nz)